Soiled and/or stained textiles, especially hospital garments, have been a consistent and on-going problem for the laundry cleaning industry. For example, since the advent of various skin cleansers and disinfectants, textiles often come into contact with such compositions whereby permanent staining of the textile may result. In the healthcare textile laundries, the use of topical antiseptic agents on patients is of concern as the adjacent textiles, such as gowns and other clothing and bedding, are routinely exposed and stained by said agents.
Common to the market of skin cleansers and disinfectants are compositions that contain CHG, which tends to bind to protein in the stratum corneum of the skin. CHG is an antimicrobial agent that has bactericidal and bacteriostatic mechanisms of action via the disruption of bacterial membranes. It is used in oral rinses and skin cleansers and marketed under a variety of brand names. Because of its antimicrobial capabilities, CHG is often used in hospital settings as a surgical scrub, as a rubbing agent prior to the use of hypodermic or intravenous needles (in place of iodine), and/or as an agent for pre-operatively preparing skin for a medical procedure.
The protein binding characteristic of CHG results in a persistent residue on the surface of the skin, which can come into contact with textiles meant to cover the skin. As a result, CHG may become adsorbed onto the textile, which cannot be removed by washing and/or the application of chlorine bleach; traditional washing in the presence of one or more alkaline detergents and chlorine bleach will fix the CHG to the textile. When textiles stained with compositions containing CHG, are laundered initially in a traditional alkaline detergent wash, followed by a hydrogen peroxide or other similar oxygen-based bleaching solution, the CHG stain is not visible; however, a colorless residue may remain in the textile. If this CHG-bound textile is then ever exposed to chlorine bleach, a permanent dark stain will appear where the CHG is present. This is due to a chemical reaction between CHG and chlorine.
Therefore, a composition and a process are needed that will remove the CHG from textiles completely, thereby allowing for the textile to be laundered with chlorine-based bleaching systems and, for example, in alkaline conditions. Such a composition and process would not result in a permanent stain.